Golf practice device

ABSTRACT

A golf practice device including a golf ball which travels a restricted distance along an inclined guiding string. The ball is provided with a ring which slides along the string. A tee is integrally connected to the ring. The guiding string is slanted upwardly away from the golfer so that the ball will slide back on its own to the tee off position.

United States Patent Muss Aug. 28, 1973 GOLF PRACTICE DEVICE 1,907,412 5/1933 Zimmer 273/200 A 1971 H ..273 26 E [76] Hemgstand 3233323 Z1969 273/19; A x

Weg 27, Kochel am See, Germany [22] Filed: 1972 Primary Examiner-George J. Mario [21] Appl. No.: 241,576 Attorney-John Lezdey et al.

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data 7 B T Apr. 8, 197] Gennany P 2] 17 297.4 [5 l A RAC A golf practice device including a golf ball which trav- [52] 273/200 273/58 273/196 els a restricted distance along an inclined guiding Illlt. string The is provided with a g slides Fleld 0f geargh 26, along h String A tee is nt g l y connected 0 the 73/ l9 95 A ring. The guiding string is slanted upwardly away from the golfer so that the ball will slide back on its own to [56] References Cited the tee off position.

UNITED STATES PATENTS Porte 273/200 A 3 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures GOLF PRACTICE DEVICE This invention relates to a practicing device for hitting the ball using conventional means, and balls especially developed for golfers. However, such devices may also be used for exercising in similar ball-hitting games. The training in ball-hitting in golf, polo and similar games is often hampered by the requirement for a large area. The practice of hitting therefore as a rule is restricted to areas of competition such as golf courses. But even when such terrain and space is available, and

.. even if it can be reached in the time available to the player, he still must go and fetch back the ball and thus lose time in practice.

The invention therefore has as an object to provide an exercising device which enables hitting a ball within small terrains or spaces, and preferably, allowing its return or ensuring same.

According to this invention, the solution of this problem lies in a practicing device which determines the beginning and end of the balls flight path following impact and contains a means for guiding the ball, such as a string or cord.

The practicing device according to this invention also allows hitting the ball with any conventional hitting means. Hitting can be carried out with full impact and the ball will fly as far as the string or cord will let it. In order to ensure that the ball after impact does follow as close as possible the flight pathdetermined by the impact alone, the end of the guiding string is fastened at some elevation, to a pole member such as a pole, tree or wall. Thus the guiding string rises more or less along an oblique plane and when such guidance is steep enough, the ball which was hit shall come back on its own. This enables the player to hit many balls quickly in succession without having to fetch them or without someone else having to fetch them.

The drawing illustrates diagrammatically a practicing or exercising device according to the invention,

wherein:

FIG. I is a whole view of the practicing device according to this invention,

FIG. 2 is a detailed view of a ball for the device according to FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a modified embodiment of a device of this invention. It is understood that since the exercising device according to the invention has been developed for and tested by golfers, the description below will make use of the simplifying term golf for all kinds of games involving ball-hitting.

FIG. 1 illustrates a golf ball or a similar object, denoted by 1, being guided by a ring 2 along a guiding string 3. This guiding string 3 is fastened at the ballhitting location by means of a stake or a tent ring 4 in the ground and at the far end 5 of a rod 6. The rod 6 is also fastened into the ground. In order to keep ball 1 in a favorable impacting position, a tee 7 or similar device is mounted below guiding ring 2. The tee 7 may easily be pushed into the groundand therefore keeps the ball at the proper height and in proper position. If the device is built in such fashion, then it will be possible to hit the ball 1 with full impact using a conventional club or iron. According to the strength of the impact, the ball 1 will then fly some distance along the guiding string but in any case only as far as the strings end where it is stopped by impact. Because the guiding string 3 is at a slant, the ball 1 will then slide back on its own or at least to within the vicinity of its starting point. It may be advantageous if a particularly smoothsurface string is used, which will allow the ball 1 to slide well upon being hit and upon its return path.

FIG. 2 shows a possible embodiment of a ball 1 for the practicing device according to this invention. In this case a guiding ring 2 is provided with a threaded peg 70 that anchors solidly and reliably in the ball 1. On the other side, the threaded peg 7a is provided with a tee 7 or similar device. If the guiding ring 2 is made of wire, then so will be the threaded peg. 7a and the tee 7. On the other hand, this component may also be made by extrusion or casting. The ring 2 may be provided with some closure means, as for a key-ring, so the ball may easily be hooked on the guiding string 3 or taken off it.

The guiding ring 2 may also be fastened to the ball 1 by glueing or vulcanization, provided it be equipped with a contact cap (not shown) in lieu of threaded peg 7a. The tee 7 too might be replaced by a support area (not shown).

The guiding component may also be molded or otherwise shaped on specially made balls and be of the same material.

In the embodiment of FIG. 3, there is shown a guiding string 10 fastened at one end at a tree 8 and elevated at that end, while the other end is hooked to a stake 9. Ball 11 rests in the initial position on a tee l2 and then slides along the string 10. It may be sufficient in this respect that the ball 11 be bored through along a spherical radius. In this embodiment, there is a suitably spherical padding body 13 for damping elastically particularly heavy impacts.

7 Obviously, the embodiments shown are exemplary only and a wide variety of embodiments may be devised wihout departing from the spirit and scope thereof.

I claim:

l. A practicing device for practicing hitting a golf ball comprising a ball element, a tee device including a tee element and a ring member fixedly mounted on the top of said tee element, said ring member being secured to the outer surface of said ball element in a plane coextensive with a diameter of said ball element and at a point on the ring member opposed to the locationof the tee element and a guide line means fixed between a lower point adjacent the ground and a raised point to assume an inclined position, said guide line means passing through said ring member secured to said ball element to permit said tee element to be inserted in the ground adjacent the lower end of said guide line means to support the attached ball element in a position to be struck by a golf club, said ball and attached tee device returning to the lower end of said guide line means by sliding down the inclined guide line means after being struck by a golf club.

2. A practicing device as claimed in claim 1 and further including means fixed to the end of said guide line means for removably fixing one end to the ground and the other end to a raised point.

3. A practicing device as claimed in claim 1 and further comprising a padding member fixed to said guide line means adjacent the raised end thereof to cushion the impact of said ball element and attached tee device after being struck by a golf club. 

1. A practicing device for practicing hitting a golf ball comprising a ball element, a tee device including a tee element and a ring member fixedly mounted on the top of said tee element, said ring member being secured to the outer surface of said ball element in a plane coextensive with a diameter of said ball element and at a point on the ring member opposed to the location of the tee element and a guide line means fixed between a lower point adjacent the ground and a raised point to assume an inclined position, said guide line means passing through said ring member secured to said ball element to permit said tee element to be inserted in the ground adjacent the lower end of said guide line means to support the attached ball element in a position to be struck by a golf club, said ball and attached tee device returning to the lower end of said guide line means by sliding down the inclined guide line means after being struck by a golf club.
 2. A practicing device as claimed in claim 1 and further including means fixed to the end of said guide line means for removably fixing one end to the ground and the other end to a raised point.
 3. A practicing device as claimed in claim 1 and further comprising a padding member fixed to said guide line means adjacent the raised end thereof to cushion the impact of said ball element and attached tee device after being struck by a golf club. 